A Killer Among Them

A few weeks had passed. An official statement was released from the Tower announcing the engagement of Steve Rogers and Kate Blackwell. That caused a media sensation that had only just started to die down. Kate and Steve had agreed on a small wedding with only just their closest friends and colleagues in attendance. The location of the wedding ceremony was a tightly guarded secret since they did not want the media to be there. The wedding was going to take place in upstate New York in a lakeside church and then Steve and Kate would leave for their three week honeymoon to a small, tropical island, the location of which was also a tightly guarded secret. Tony was already talking about a bachelor party, which made Steve uncomfortable and therefore caused Tony to talk more about it. The wedding, because it was very small, was not difficult to plan and would actually be happening in two weeks. Kate had already found a dress. It wasn't overly flashy, but was classic and elegant, just what she knew Steve liked.

As the wedding date neared Kate began to think more and more about her parents. She was upset to know that her father wasn't going to be there to walk her down the aisle. Though the other guys had been sweet enough to offer to step in and perform that task, including Agent Coulson whom she was still close with, she had declined them all and had decided to just walk herself down. However, after much debate she decided that she did want to speak to Natalya about the details surrounding her parent's death and see if she could shed any light on who might have killed them. She approached Natalya in the kitchen one rainy afternoon.

"Nat, would it be possible for me to talk to you for a moment?"

Natalya nodded and took a sip of her tea. "Of course. What is it?"

Kate sighed. This topic was not easy for her to talk about. "It's about my parents. You see they were both SHIELD agents and they were killed by an SSB agent while trying to help another SHIELD agent that this SSB agent was targeting." She went into more detail...as much as she had. Natalya listened and kept a neutral expression. "Well, I'm just trying to figure out who might have killed them. Since you worked for the organization I thought perhaps you might know."

Natalya slowly shook her head. "I'm sorry Kate. I don't know who it might have been. There are quite a few SSB agents and I was not made aware of what they were doing."

Kate nodded a little and wasn't sure if she felt disappointed or relieved. "I understand. Thank you though."

Kate stood up and left the kitchen. As she did Natalya's expression changed to one of pure horror and fear. She had killed them! She had killed her friend's parents! How was she going to tell her this? Could she tell her this? She needed to talk to Steve. He would know what she needed to do. She got up and almost ran into Steve in the hallway. "I..I need to talk to you," she whispered to him almost frantically.

In the End Pharoah and Evan were chosen to go to Surlan Industries to take ‘the tour’ and get an idea of where they stored the Carbonadium and how much they had. Steve was looking into his tablet that had their video feed as he sat in the large leather recliner in the main living area. He had a mug of coffee and the fresh scent of coffee washed over the entire floor. Coffee and pancakes with Logan mixing the batter for them like a madman. When he saw Natalya approach him he lifted up his head briefly to nod a regard to her When he heard her voice though his head shifted up and he took a much more scrutinizing glance toward her.

“Ofcourse...is...everything alright?” he said. He had never seen Natalya out of countenance and so concern grew quickly in his mind. He looked to see where everyone was and it appeared they were far enough away for her to speak to him in confidence.

Natalya's face was almost an ashen color and she looked...panicked. This was not like her...not at all. Natalya had always feared that what she had done in her past would come back to haunt her, but this was so much worse than she had feared. She had killed the parents of her friend. Kate trusted her and now she didn't know what to do. "I...I don't know what to do Steve. I...I've done something horrible."

Kate had gone back to the room she and Steve shared, but did not find him there. She walked back out into the hallway and started to head towards the main living area...

Natalya forced herself to look at Steve, whose eyes were locked on her now. Without even saying so she could hear the dialogue going on in his head. What did you do Nat? Natalya swallowed hard and forced herself just to say it. "Kate's parents...that was me. I...killed them."

There was an audible gasp behind them and as Natalya looked over she saw Kate standing there. Kate's face had gone pale and tears began to come to her eyes. The look in her eyes was one of...betrayal. "...You?...You killed them?"

Natalya felt tears come to her own eyes at the look on her friend's face...anguish mixed with anger and betrayal. Natalya could only look down and nod at her question. Kate suddenly felt sick to her stomach and she turned and fled the room. Natalya felt Steve quickly get up to go after her...leaving Natalya standing there alone. She had never hated herself so much as she did in that moment. She was a monster in sheep's clothing. Why did she ever think she could belong here? Quickly, she left the living area and then left the Tower. It was raining and she didn't have an umbrella or any other possessions, but she didn't care. She just started walking away from the Tower.

Logan had seen Natalya move up to Steve and though he couldn’t hear what she had said to him Kate’s reaction certainly spoke volumes as to the gravity of what had passed between them. Logan turned back at the pancakes that were cooking and frowned at them as he turned off the burners.

The rain came down in a steady downpour though if wasn’t a drenching kind of rain. It didn’t take long for her hair to become soaked and matted to her head and after a while longer her shirt was drenched as well. She heard Logan stepping quickly to catch her up and he sidled up alongside her. He was now getting wet to but he likely cared about that as little as she did.

“Where we goin Nat? By the look on your face you just told Steve that you lost his shield and can’t remember where ya lost it,” Logan said grimly. “I know this involves Kate somehow but you don’t have ta tell me if ya don’t want to,” Logan said.

Utter shock fluttered through Steve. Of all the things he didn’t want to hear, ‘THAT’ was one of them. He couldn’t even begin to think how they were going to fix this. He was to concerned about Kate who would be reliving her parents deaths all over again. No...their murders. And at the hands of her friend no less. He could not think about Natalya now though, he needed to focus on Kate. He followed her into their room.

Natalya wasn't exactly in the mood for company right now and she had been hoping not to have Logan follow her. She was upset...that much would be clear to him immediately. "WE are not going anywhere Logan. You are going to go back to the Tower and you are going to let me go." She looked over and saw him open his mouth to start to argue with her. She grabbed him and pulled him into an alleyway and shoved him up against a brick wall. "I killed them! Kate's parent's...I killed them! I murdered them both for getting in the way of me taking out another SHIELD agent and then I killed that person too. I never bothered finding out their names because I didn't care. Well, they were Kate's parents. I'm the reason her father won't be there to walk her down the aisle at her wedding."

She let him go and then wiped away tears from her eyes, but to no avail because more kept coming. "I know you tried with me Logan. You gave me a fair chance...a chance you didn't have to give me. But I warned you then that I wasn't worth it and now you can see why. I'm a monster Logan who belongs nowhere."

She looked away for a moment and then back at him. "Do it. Kill me. I don't want to live like this anymore Logan. Finally do what you were sent to do. You went against SHIELD's orders by keeping me alive because they knew that I wasn't worth saving. Kill me before the SSB gets their hands on me. Please..."

Kate was trying to catch her breath. Her heart felt as if it was going to burst from her chest it was beating so hard. She had trusted Natalya...worked and lived along side her and all this time she had been her parent's killer. Her parent's had been good people and she missed them both dearly. She had been robbed of a full life with them and that thief had been living among them. She sank down to the bathroom floor and began to sob.

Logan listened but the more that he did, the more angry he became. He felt the rough bricks on his back as Natalya pressed him into them and for a moment...a brief moment what she said had surprised him. He was silent for a few moments as he digested what she said but then his eyebrows furled back in anger once more. He flipped them around and pressed her up against the worn and weathered bricks of a large building that stood behind them in the alley. Green dumpsters and garbage were on both sides of the chain fences about half way down. He gripped her shirt and jerked it up roughly.

“And so nothing has changed! So what you’ve done has hit close to home but it changes nothing!” Logan growled and he narrowed his eyes at her angrily. “Your no more a monster than I am and if you think I’m letting you walk now, after all this time then you’re not as smart as I thought you were. What we do is not about trying to make amends for our past! It’s about moving forward and surviving! You can’t bring them back...anyone back! You’re not that person anymore so don’t give me this bullshit. Take the pain of it...her pain, Kate’s pain and own it! Not run away from it like a coward!” Logan said roughly.

Natalya began to tremble with anger at what Logan said. Her dark eyes narrowed dangerously at him. It was a look that would have caused any normal man to wet himself at. She got her hands up and shoved him back off of her. "Coward? You're calling ME a coward?! What about you?! The only reason you don't want me to go is because you need me Logan! You need to take care of me and hide behind my pain and my past because it's a hell of a lot easier than facing your own!"

Logan’s teeth ground together and he clenched his fists so hard his knuckles cracked. He had thought they were over this! They were friends, a team...a package deal! And now Natalya was throwing it all away. He didn’t understand or want to understand. Reflexively he punched her in the face and shoved her to the side harshly.

“Then go then! Run! Run away coward!” Logan growled and then chuckled a dark, grim chuckle. “This will be the second time you left Evan in the lurch! Maybe Malcolm IS better off being dead than sharing himself with the likes of you!”

Natalya staggered slightly from the punch and looked up at him. She wanted to scream and hit him over and over again, but the realization of what he said hit her. That hurt far worse than anything Logan could have done to her and that pain was reflected in her eyes. She turned and left the alleyway without another word.

Steve let Kate alone, she deserved her tears and she didn’t need him trying to quiet them. He stayed near her though, in their room. Evan and Pharaoh returned after a successful scouting mission at Surlan Industries. They had alot of video and alot of data, more than enough to position themselves in such a way to stop Doom and his goons from taking all the Carbonadium that was there. Logan had since come back and damp as he was he sat, sprawled out on the couch. Pharoah noticed him first and his eyebrows rose when he saw his body language.

“Something happened,” Pharoah said softly only for Evan’s ears alone and he looked around the room. Evan heard him but clearly didn’t understand what he meant. “What? What is it?” He asked as the two of them moved toward Logan. Logan turned to regard them then turned away back toward the tv. “She’s gone,” Was all he said and he lifted up the remote and turned the channel. Evan’s eyebrows rose still not quite certain what he meant. “She? Whose gone? Natalya...Kate? Natalya? Where did she go?” Evan asked as he turned to look toward her door. “Don’t know and don’t care…” he began but Evan, obviously becoming alarmed cut him off. “Speak plainly Logan, what do you mean she’s gone!?” Evan said louder than before and his words held a hint of urgency and irritation in them.

Logan explained bluntly what had happened and both Evan and Pharoah looked aghast at what Logan said he did and said. “You...you hot headed fool!” Evan growled angrily and then gathered shadows around him. “I’ll help you find her Evan,” Pharoah said and Evan nodded and touched Pharoah’s shoulder. They stepped through a shadow and appeared outside of the tower. “I’ll go this way, you go the opposite way then we’ll keep fanning out in a pattern,” Pharaoh suggested and Evan agreed. ‘Damn it Natalya!’ Evan thought as he began to run.

Steve held Kate in the shower. The water was pretty hot, the way she liked it and she still had fits of sobs as she curled up on his lap as they sat there on the floor of the shower. They were naked, he had managed to get her out of her clothes and the water seemed to soothe her a little and the sound of the water drowned out the rest of the world.

Natalya had left Logan only to go into another alley way. She sank down to the ground beside a trashcan and sobbed. She thought about Evan about how leaving him again was going to hurt him, but she had realized that he was far better off without her. He deserved better than her...far better. She deserved whatever fate was out there for her. Finally, she managed to get to her feet. She needed to get out of the city. She didn't have any money on her, but she knew Tony's bank account information. She had a very sharp memory thanks to the SSB. She didn't need much. Just a little to get a train ticket. The bank was a half dozen blocks away. She stood up and began to walk that way.

Kate hadn't said anything yet. She had just cried. She didn't fight Steve as he undressed her and got her into the shower. The hot water and the feeling of his arms around her soothed her some, but the tears continued to fall. "I knew about her past...about the kinds of things she had done but I always just pushed it aside because I considered her my friend. But this...how am I supposed to forgive her for this?"